Blake Coleman may have just scored one of the best Stanley Cup Final goals of all time

Blake Coleman may have just scored one of the best goals ever seen in a Stanley Cup Final.

With seconds left in the second period of Game 2 of the 2021 NHL Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday, Blake Coleman scored what may not only be one of the most important goals in the Tampa Bay Lightning’s season, but also a goal that will go down as legend in the rich history of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

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Let us set the scene for you; with the game tied at 1-1 and just two seconds left in the second period, Tampa Bay forward Barclay Goodrow grabbed the loose puck and broke into the offensive zone before feeding a dish across to Coleman who dove full-length to somehow poke the puck pass Canadiens goalie Carey Price.

It was stunning when you first watched it, but it is a play that gets better and better with each and every viewing. I mean, to have the sense of mind to get the backhand on the puck to get it over Price with time expiring while diving full stretch at breakneck speed is just otherworldly impressive. And the fact that it was a buzzer-beater goal elevates it into its own different category.

It was just an incredible hustle play by Coleman, who has history when it comes to these kind of goals (see below), and it was yet another example of how he and Goodrow have helped to take the Lightning to the next level after being acquired at the 2020 NHL Trade Deadline.

Coleman’s goal has been played over and over again in the hours since, and rightly so, and it was the kind of moment that was made for the Playoffs. Put simply, it is a goal that will be shown on every single postseason highlight reel for the rest of time.

Period.

Blake Coleman is now the proud owner of one of the best Stanley Cup Final goals ever

Far from just being a work of art in terms of the technique and the vision needed for Coleman to dive and force that puck past Carey with literally seconds remaining, it could be a defining moment in these Playoffs and perhaps even in Coleman’s career.

For starters, just consider the overall narrative of Game 2 at Amalie Arena on Tuesday. After being dominated in a 5-1 loss in Game 1, the Habs looked more like the team that have shocked their way through the postseason so far, and they were better than the Lightning in almost every single department.

They outshot the Bolts, they were more physical, they controlled the puck better and they did an excellent job on the penalty kill. However, for all of their brilliance, the Canadiens came up against a red hot goalie in Andrei Vasilevskiy who had one of his best game of these Playoffs with a 42-save night.

With Vasilevskiy standing on his head for the whole game, there was little margin for error and that’s why Coleman’s incredible goal could have so many ramifications when it comes to the rest of this series.

It absolutely broke the back of the Canadiens given that it came with two seconds left of the second period, and you could even say that it crushed the very spirit of those players who couldn’t come up with a response in the third period.

Instead, the Habs gave up an absolute killer of a goal at 15:42 in the third, with a misunderstanding in the defensive zone between Jeff Petry and Joel Edmundson leading to Ondrej Palat banking the puck in off the skate of Price to wrap the game up.

Therefore, Coleman’s slice of magic will go down as one of the most important goals in the history of the Tampa Bay Lightning, it will forever live on as one of the most incredible must-see goals in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and it may have just changed the overall course of this series given that the Habs were the better team and could have easily won Game 2 to split the series heading back to Montreal.

Just as former Lightning defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk scored the OT winner against the Dallas Stars in Game 4 of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final to give Tampa a 3-1 series lead, and just as Martin St. Louis scored 33 seconds into double OT to force a Game 7 in the 2004 Stanley Cup Final, the year that the Bolts won their first championship, Coleman’s goal in Game 2 of this year’s Playoffs could be looked upon with the same importance if this team can get the job finished.

This series now shifts to Montreal for Games 3 & 4 and it will be interesting to see how the Canadiens respond in Game 3 on Friday in their own building, but if they are unable to grab a foothold in this series and the Lighting go on to repeat as champions, then there is no doubt that Coleman’s mind-boggling goal will be looked upon as a real turning point or defining moment in the 2021 Stanley Cup Final.

Coleman has been lights out in this series so far with a combined total of two points (1 G, A 1) and 14 hits in two games, and not only has he, along with Goodrow, proved to be the missing piece in the championship puzzle for the Tampa Bay Lightning, but his jaw-dropping goal in Game 2 could well lead to a second straight Stanley Cup for this team.

But, even if it doesn’t, its legacy as one of the best goals ever seen in a Stanley Cup Final is already cemented.